Hilaire Belloc? Solomon Cohen? John Butler Yeats? Anonymous?
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Question for Quote Investigator: Absolute candor leads to social friction, alienation, and hostility. People tell lies to avoid hurting the feelings of others. Also, people embellish the truth to construct entertaining anecdotes from humdrum events. Further, people alter the truth to avoid harsh certainties. The following controversial adage provides a justification:
Without a little falsehood life would be impossible.
Would you please explore the provenance of this saying?
Reply from Quote Investigator: In 1941 French-English writer Hilaire Belloc published “The Silence Of The Sea and Other Essays”. The quotation appeared within an essay titled “On Speaking Too Soon”. Boldface added to excerpts by QI:1
Telling the news, like telling any kind of truth, is dangerous and cannot be unlimited. Obviously dangerous to the man who tells the truth, but dangerous also to the community he addresses. The only practical debate in the matter is on the degree of falsehood that ought to be admitted in order that the truth shall be of value.
We are all agreed that without a little falsehood life would be impossible. Gold cannot be worked without an alloy, it is not stiff enough.
Below are additional selected citations in chronological order.
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